2,300 Shares in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Acquired by Maytree Asset Management Ltd

Maytree Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 2,300 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $969,000. Microsoft makes up about 2.2% of Maytree Asset Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 10,532,402 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,439,407,000 after buying an additional 4,568,539 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 2.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 165,024,812 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $70,790,682,000 after acquiring an additional 3,264,648 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 46.1% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 7,048,244 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,032,859,000 after acquiring an additional 2,222,483 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 4.1% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 54,590,791 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $23,490,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125,030 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 43,900.4% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 2,042,499 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $860,913,000 after purchasing an additional 2,037,857 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $387.30 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $468.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $385.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $411.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 trillion, a PE ratio of 31.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.00.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.93 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 26.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $475.00 price objective (down from $500.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group cut their price target on Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $530.00 to $472.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $493.13.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.